The present invention relates to agricultural chemical dispensing systems and more particularly to a grid recipe and depth control system for agricultural chemical injection systems and planting systems utilized in agricultural environments.
In many agricultural applications it is necessary to inject or spray chemicals either onto the soil or onto the plants growing on the soil, such as fertilizers, herbicides, pesticides, fumigants, etc. The chemicals may be applied in liquid form or granular form. Typically what has been provided is a chemical container either in the form of a liquid tank or a granular bin in which the chemical is carried until it is metered out and dispensed through one or more spray nozzles carried on booms.
Raven Industries of Sioux Falls, South Dakota, the assignee of the present application, has previously sold a sprayer control system referred to as the SCS 440 in which a single chemical could be controlled to be dispensed at one of two pre-programmed flow rates and dispensed through up to six booms. Various data displays could be selected at the control console. A later control console known as the SCS 700 allowed for pre-programming one or two chemicals at a speed compensated application rate.
In addition, different amounts of multiple fertilizers, herbicides and other agricultural chemicals are desired in different areas of a field. The amount of a particular chemical to be applied is based upon the soil type, crop type, and weed infestation of a certain area of a field. The application of multiple fertilizers by use of a control system is disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,630,773 and 5,220,876. However, the control systems disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,630,773 and 5,220,876 require numerous hardware components and elaborate software or computer programs in order to implement the control systems with the pre-existing farm equipment. The elaborate and expensive control systems provided by U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,630,773 and 5,220,876 normally cannot be utilized by the individual farmer due to their high cost and, consequently, are almost exclusively purchase by large farming cooperatives and corporations.
While the control systems disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,630,773 and 5,220,876 are accurate and enable substantially higher yields to be obtained, many individual farmers and small farming operations are desirous of obtaining a higher crop yield by improving current farming practices without incurring the expense of purchasing a control system similar to those disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,630,773 and 5,220,876 and the difficulties encountered in retrofitting existing equipment to accommodate such systems. Simply put, the more expensive control systems, while providing adequate results, are simply too expensive to implement for the individual farmer or small farming operation.
Specifically, U.S. Pat. No. 5,220,876 is directed toward a variable rate fertilizer spreading apparatus and control system that utilizes detailed fertilizer maps and detailed on-board soil mapping systems that incorporate data obtained from analyzing the soil using soil analysis apparatus that is provided with the system. Thus, U.S. Pat. No. 5,220,876 discloses a fully automatic system in which manual overrides by the equipment operator is not desired, nor provided for. Similarly, U.S. Pat. No. 4,630,773 incorporates a digitized soil map which is generated from an aerial photograph of the field. The method disclosed by U.S. Pat. No. 4,630,773 also includes steps for testing the various soil types in the field and adjusting the fertilizer types accordingly.
However, as noted above, individual farmers and small farm operations such as family-owned farms are not desirous of such a sophisticated or such an expensive system. further, such elaborate and expensive systems are not necessary because individual farmers know from their experience over many seasons specifically which areas of their field may require more or less fertilizer or more or less herbicide. Specifically, by way of prior testing of the soil through years of farming his fields, a farmer is familiar with the different conditions in the field such as lower areas which accumulate water and, thus, have a greater weed infestation problem. The farmer is also familiar with other areas of the field where the soil is lacking nutrients and, consequently, additional fertilizer is required or where the planting depth needs to be adjusted.
The problem faced by these experienced individual farmers is how to convey this information to their equipment operators in an inexpensive and efficient manner without resorting to the elaborate systems discussed above. A solution to this problem would preferably involve reliance upon the farmers knowledge and experience and therefore would be a heuristic procedure. A solution to this problem would also preferably enable the farmer to input the data in the form of a grid recipe from a location remote from the field, i.e. from his home or office and which would eliminate entirely the requirement that a fertilizer and soil map or planting depth map be generated as required by the more expensive and elaborate prior art control systems.
It is, therefore, desirable to have a multiple chemical injection system for agriculture use which is capable of providing different amounts of multiple types of fertilizers or chemicals to be dispensed in different parts of a field whereby the amounts dispensed are determined and controlled by data generated by the farmer based on the farmer's personal knowledge and experience.
It is also known that proper seed placement or proper seed depth will maximize plant growth. Proper seed depth will depend upon the crop being planted as well as the soil and slope conditions for the field or grid. Specifically, in parts of a field that have excellent drainage, it may be preferable to plant seeds at a deeper depth than in parts of a field having poor drainage. Accordingly, there is a need for a planting system for agricultural use which is capable of planting seeds at different depths in different parts of a field.
Finally, there are circumstances where a farmer may desire to apply chemicals simultaneously with the planting of seeds in a field. As discussed above, the amount and rate of application of a chemical such as a fertilizer or insecticide to a field will vary and depend upon the different conditions in the field. Further, planting depth of seeds will also vary and depend upon the different conditions in a field. Accordingly, there is a need for a combination grid recipe and depth control system which simultaneously controls the rate of an application of a chemical such as a fertilizer or insecticide to a field depending upon the specific location and further that can vary the planting depth of seeds depending upon field location.